Planting Green!. The advances cultivation technique for sustainable crop production

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CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE SERVICE CENTER (DALRM/GDA/MAFF)

Planting green!

The advanced cultivation technique for sustainable crop production

Vira Leng, Sovannara Chhoeng, Vuthy Sous, Veng Sar, Ouddom Chet, Florent Tivet, Rada Kong, Koy Ra

CONTEXTCONTEXT

Direct Seeding Mulch-based Cropping (DMC) systems are based on 3 key principles: (i) minimum soil disturbance, (ii) permanent soil protection and (iii) crops and cover/relay crops diversification. These principles are translated into ecological processes with a litter system, a continuous flow of fresh organic matter, driving soil biota activity, soil struc-ture and soil organic C and N accumulation. The use of herb-icide and the requirement on the implementation of opera-tional sequences (rolling and spraying cover crops at 30 pri-or the establishment of main crops) are generally empha-sized as the main bottlenecks to disseminate and adapt DMC systems to context.

IMPROVING CROP PRODUCTIV

IMPROVING CROP PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFIBATILITY

ITY AND PROFIBATILITY

WHILE REDUCING INVESTMENT COST THROUGH

PLANTING GREEN TECHNOLOGY

Our goal is to develop a new generation of DMC systems based on the establishment of main crops (rice, soybean, cassava, maize, and other pulse crops) on the living cover crops to improve the efficiency of the system (less use of fossil fuel, higher flexibility, lower operational costs, elimi-nate the use of herbicide…). Planting green technology re-duces the operational sequences for the main crop estab-lishment, eliminate the use of herbicide (both pre and post applications) while enhancing profitability and environ-mental quality.

BENEFITS AND SYSTEM

BENEFITS AND SYSTEM’’S EFFICIENCY

S EFFICIENCY

Assessment of the system suggested that the planting green technology reduces the operational sequences as all opera-tions are done the same day (rolling the cover crops and sowing the main crops), require less energy, and decrease production costs. The system makes possible to plant through living, standing, mix of cover crops (combining grasses, legumes, among others genus) without compro-mising main crop establishment. It also enables to extend the growing period of cover crops increasing the quantity of biomass that returns to the soil, reduce evaporation rate, and slow down the process of decomposition of the cover crops leading to better weeds management across the crop-ping period. These innovative cropcrop-ping systems open ways to higher flexibility, enhance profit and environmental qual-ity while engaging CA practices towards organic manage-ment.

OPERATIONAL SEQUENCES OF MAIZE CULTIVATION UNDER PLANTING GREEN TECHNOLOGY

July 4

July 4thth 20172017

Mix of cover crops: sorghum,

macrotyloma, and sunnhemp Roll and sow maize at the same time _{on living cover crops}

Terminate cover crops after sowing

without herbicide Maize at 12 days after sowing Maize at 27 days after sowing _{(29th July 2017)}

RICE DMC SYSTEM USING SEED BROADCASTING TECHNOLOGY

June 15

June 15thth 20162016

Mix of cover crops: sorghum,and

sunnhemp on living cover crops

Broadcastiog rice ….. July 12July 12thth

Roll down after

broadcasting Mid September

October 16th

CHALLENGES

 Assess different combinations of cover crops for diversed cash crops (soybean and pulse crops)

 Improve the efficiency of roller crimpers for cover crop control

 Include additional tools such as biological control agents, biochar, thermophosphate on seed coating.

 Assess the cost and efficiency of the use of different size and type of agricultural machineries for different planting green systems and different contexts (flood plains, irriga-tion scheme, upper terraces)

Maize at 22 days after sowing on mix of living sorghum, macrotyloma, and sunnhemp